Covid Update Dec 9 2020
The coronavirus is just about everywhere on the Treasure Coast’s three counties and nearly all ZIP codes in between.
The region has seen over 23,200 cases of COVID-19 and nearly 700 deaths since the pandemic hit Florida in March. As 2020 draws to a close, some virus-weary residents are clinging to the hope of a safe, effective vaccine.
The approval, distribution and administration of vaccines will be fluid and complex.
The U.S. Food & Drug Administration’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee will meet Dec. 10 to assess emergency-use authorization of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.
The United Kingdom’s Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency approved the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine Dec. 2. Pfizer, headquartered in New York City, and BioNTech, based in Germany, said this marked the first authorization in the world.
The vaccine will be free — funded by U.S. taxpayer dollars, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Providers may still charge administration fees.
While state health department offices in the tri-county area have been mum on details pending FDA approval of a vaccine, the Indian River County office is prepared when a vaccine becomes available, according to our news source.
Another 96 deaths in Florida are blamed on the coronavirus. Almost eight-thousand new cases were reported yesterday. The state’s positivity rate for new cases is nearly eight-percent.
An attempt to bring back a mask mandate, to curb a rise in COVID-19, was thwarted Tuesday by the opinion that a growing number of coronavirus cases locally didn’t rise to “emergency” levels. Moreover, county commissioners argued, Gov. Ron DeSantis has short-circuited any government’s ability to effectively enforce mask mandates with fines.
Only two commissioners — Sarah Heard and Ed Ciampi — voted to allow a public hearing on a new mask mandate.
Governor Ron DeSantis says he is thrilled to be on the doorstep of vaccinating Florida’s most vulnerable populations. Speaking at the coronavirus vaccine summit at the White House yesterday, DeSantis said once a vaccine is approved it will be distributed to residents in nursing homes and assisted living facilities.
We believe it doesn’t take a mandate to do the right thing. Please wear a mask and social distance. By doing this you are sending a message to our health care workers that you care!
